April 19, 2014 00:00

Before even becoming pregnant, many women start taking steps to prepare their bodies for pregnancy. That is why Nine Naturals is excited to partner with PregPrep in the Make That Baby Series to help bring you helpful tips and information for preparing for pregnancy.

Cervical mucus: it’s a sticky subject. Some women might find the idea of analyzing their bodily secretions unappealing. But when it comes to achieving pregnancy, understanding the slippery substance all women confront — in different forms — throughout their cycle can make all the difference. Cervical Mucus, or CM, was once thought of only as nature’s lubrication for intercourse. Now, we know it’s responsible for several important jobs that help facilitate conception.

Cervical mucus changes consistency to provide different assistance at different times. Depending on the stage in a woman’s cycle, the mucus can both serve as a barrier or a transporting medium for the sperm. It can protect sperm on its journey and help keep it alive prior to ovulation for up to 5 days. This constantly changing mucus, which is secreted from the cervix, is made up of 90% water. The percentage of water content fluctuates throughout the month to support the role it needs to play at various times.

Because the texture and volume of cervical mucus changes throughout a woman’s menstrual cycle, CM is often used as a good physical barometer of increased fertility and impending ovulation. Here is a brief overview of the CM changes that can help a woman determine where she is in her cycle and when she is most fertile.

Stage 1: Immediately following the bleeding experienced in menstruation, discharge is sticky and scant. This type of CM is neither abundant enough nor thin enough to allow conception. Most women cannot become pregnant during this stage of their cycle. It is also interesting to note that the vaginal environment, without the protective layer of cervical mucus, is actually hostile to sperm because of its high level of acidity.

Stage 2: Several days after menstruation, some women will notice the presence of a creamy mucus that has the consistency and look of lotion. This type of cervical mucus is actually quite useful to sperm as it protects the sperm that arrive before ovulation. Sperm can live up to five days in this warm, protective environment. This kind of mucus can be a sign that ovulation is less than 5 days away.

Stage 3: In the one or two days prior to ovulation, and throughout ovulation itself, cervical mucus thins itself further and become more slippery. During this stage, the CM will have the clear appearance and texture of raw egg white. This “egg white quality mucus” is considered to be the most ideal “fertile” substance for promoting conception. This type of cervical mucus allows the sperm to move easily to the egg and protects it on its journey. A recent study looked at the architecture of cervical mucus under a high powered microscope and showed perfectly sized openings built to allow sperm that is of a healthier “shape”, and block or impede sperm that is less ideal.

The role of cervical mucus in reproduction is still being studied, and new discoveries about its incredible conception enhancing properties continue to be revealed.

Sometimes cervical mucus may not be in an optimal state leading up to conception. This possible impediment to pregnancy can affect any woman and can be hard to pinpoint. The Make That Baby kit by PregPrep offers a proactive solution to this issue. It contains a bolstered mucolytic designed just for conception. FertilPrep is doctor-formulated and natural. It works to thin viscous cervical mucus and helps promote ideal CM to facilitate transport of sperm to egg.

As you prepare yourself for pregnancy, Nine Naturals knows that you are thinking about everything that you put in and on your body. Nine Naturals is excited to offer the Nine Naturals + PregPrep Bundles, featuring Nine Naturals products of your choosing with the PregPrep Make that Baby Kit! Detoxify your beauty routine with luxurious all natural & sulfate-free products and get key nutritional support to bolster fertility and promote ideal reproductive health with physician-formulated natural supplements in the PregPrep Make That Baby Kit.